ATTACK ON COUNT

Greymouth Evening Star, 20 September 1938, Page 8

ATTACK ON COUNT

FAMOUS FOR HOSPITALITY.

FLORENCE, August 5

An attack by an Italian anti-Semitic weekly on Count Pecci-Blunt, an American citizen well-known in Italy for his hospitality, has ca;used a sensation in Italian society.

The Count, whose title is a. Papal one, married a great-niece of Pope Leo XIII. The weekly paper, the “Giornalissimo,” states that he is a German Jew in disguise and has twice changed his name and nationality. It also describes him as an adventurer. This attack was made soon after the Count had sent out 1,000 invitations foi> a dance to be held at Malia, his Tuscan villa. This is one of the show places of Italy and belonged at one time to Marianne Elisa Bacciochi, sister of Napoleon. The Count engaged a band from Paris and made other arrangements on a grand scale. On the invitation cards married women were asked to wear red and unmarried white. There was an eager response to his invitations, and many people who had not been invited' strove to get cards. Cabinet Ministers and other highlyplaced people were among those who accepted. When the “Giornalissimo’s” attack was published, however, many people wrote and excused themselves, saying that circumstances had arisen which forced them to cancel their acceptance of the invitation.

The Count waited until he had received 200 or 300 of these notes and then sent out another 1,000 cards, this time notices to say that the ball had been cancelled.

Many society women are now trying to get rid of their new red or white evening frocks, which are too unpleasant a reminder of the awkward incident.